Death by Chocolate Cupcakes

1. In a medium sized bowl mix milk and chocolate pudding mix until smooth then refrigerate it while you prepare the rest of the recipe. I used less of a milk to pudding mix ratio than the instructions on the back of the box call for because I wanted a thicker pudding.

2. Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl mix the cake mix with egg whites, coffee, and yogurt and mix until all ingredients are well-integrated and no clumps remain.

3. Grease 10 wells of a cupcake pan with cooking spray. (I wasn’t precise with halving the cake mix box so I ended up with ten cupcakes and not twelve). Fill each well 3/4 full. Bake for 18-21 minutes or until a tester inserted into the tallest part of a cupcake comes out clean. Remove pan from oven and set it on a rack. Let cupcakes cool to room temperature.

4. Once cupcakes have cooled, hollow out the inside of each, but make sure to leave enough cupcake at the bottom and around the sides so that it holds the pudding.

5. To fill each cupcake, layer 1-2 tablespoons of chocolate pudding, a sprinkling (or more) of chopped chocolate, a drizzle of chocolate syrup, then more chocolate pudding until filling is flush with the cupcake edges. This isn’t an exact science. The best part is that you get to call the shots and add whichever ingredients you want, in the quantities you want, as you see fit. Reserve a small amount of chopped chocolate to sprinkle over the top later on. Refrigerate if not serving immediately.

6. Right before serving, place a dollop of whipped cream atop each cupcake and drizzle with chocolate syrup and remaining chopped chocolate.